The secret to watering: When the soil is dry it's time to water (Bill Finch)

Plants need water all year round. When the soil feels dry to the touch, it's time to add water. (File photo)

Many of you are obviously confused about this thing called
watering.

I've seen gardeners water like maniacs all summer, every time
there was a moment's break in the rain. They water so much, plants literally
drown. Diseases and the pests that thrive on moisture explode.

And then when the dry days of September come, those same folks can't even seem to
remember where the spigot is.
Hey, it ain't July anymore. The everyday rainfall we depended on that time of
year has evaporated. The only significant moisture we'll get during this
season, hurricane summer, is the rainfall associated with tropical storms.

Here's a simple rule for watering that will
absolutely never let you down: When the soil where your plants are growing is
wet, don't water. When the soil is dry, water.

Sorry, but why would any other rule make any difference? And
this one is so easy to test.
Right now the soil is very dry. Try to stick a
shovel in it. You'll see.

The grass is very dry. Didn't you notice that the blades were
beginning to fold double, like hands in prayer (and praying for rain, don't you
think?)

Your shrubs are very dry, and that's why they won't flower.
Your vegetables are very dry, and that's why they won't produce.
If you want them to thrive, you're going to have
to water.

I declare, more plants are lost in September than at any other
time of the year. I guess it's because we spend all our energy watering in
July, when the lawn doesn't need to be watered, and then give up on watering at
the one time of year we need to water.

If
you've got newly planted shrubs, trees, flowers, vegetables or grasses, they'll
need water first. They don't need a lot of water, but they need it often, and
the water needs to go right to their young roots, right around the base of the
plant.

Well-established
plants, on the other hand, are another matter.

There are two times a year when well-established lawns and
flowers are most frequently lost to drought in our climate — during the dry
spells of April and early May, and during September and October. If you
remember to water well once or twice during those two trying seasons, you
usually won't need to water the rest of the year.

But
please notice I said "water well." That means
watering deeply, so that the ground is wet 6 inches below the surface. That
means leaving the sprinkler system on low for several hours, or even overnight,
so low that there's no runoff. None of this 15-minute nonsense.

And then, when the soil is thoroughly wet 6
inches deep, you're going to hang up your hose and turn off your irrigation
system until the soil is dry again three to six inches deep. That's the way
watering works.

Simple, huh? So start watering.

Bill Finch is lead science and horticulture advisor for the Mobile Botanical Gardens. You can catch his Plain Gardening radio show Sunday from 9 until 11 on 106.5 FM, and his televised segment Friday at noon on WKRG. Got questions? He'll try to answer at plaingardening@yahoo.com.